Abstract
M.Ed.
The introduction of School Based Management (SBM) in South African Schools ushered in School Management Teams (SMTs) whose responsibilities include, among others; planning, organizing, leading and control. These fundamental day-to-day duties also relate to school branding which is a new concept in South African Schools.
School branding is a new concept that warrants empirical research so that school management teams can thoroughly understand and implement it professionally. Branding a school cannot be left to the ad hoc devices of the layman. School Management Teams need to be factually conversant and knowledgeable about cultivating a knowledge substrate of school branding for application by school management teams.
Understanding and implementing the concept school branding stands to benefit schools in this era where learner mobility is determined by school choice. School choice in turn is a crucial aspect of the supply and demand of learners. These two market forces have a direct impact on the survival and existence of a school.
Schools in this day and age are compelled to market and transform themselves into winning, compelling and powerful brands. In the past schools enjoyed the geographic and racial monopoly over parents and learner choice of a school. With the advent of the democratic dispensation the survival of a school needs a scientific and commercial praxis of concepts like branding. Branding itself holds a host of benefits for all the stakeholders in a school.